Madness Can Set You Free
by Moondoe
Summary: The Listener has been found. Problem is, she is just like the Night Mother in her way of...speech patterns. Cicero is at a large loss because of this and another reason blooming in his heart. Dragonborn/Cicero
1. Chapter 1

"EXPLAAAAIN YOURSELF!"

The angered scream seemed to rock the cavern where the Dark Brotherhood. Arnbjorn made his way to his wife's study and found her pouring over the large map near the door to their bedroom.

"We've got a problem..."

Astrid straightened at the words and her mind knew only one answer:

"Hesara!"

As she ran to get to the Night Mother's coffin, a milky eyed Bosomer stood in a daze as the Jester before her screamed and raved. She thought back to what had happened only a few long minutes ago.

"_Poor Cicero. Dear Cicero. Such a humble servant..._"

Her eyes flickered towards the man. Cicero was the Keeper. Of the Night Mother. The dark matron of the Brotherhood she had entered into. He had arrived a few months ago with the coffin that carried her remains and since, the family had never been the same.

Hesara had watched with a sense of detachment as she watched everything else. The man dressed as a Jester and acted like a madman. Many times he had danced around her, trying to get her to crack a smile instead of trying to get her to talk like most. The only time she broke out of the haze was when Astrid had taken her aside to give her this new...mission. She believed that Cicero was trying to talk the others into turning back to the Night Mother as their leader instead of Astrid. She gave Hesara her plan of listening in on Cicero's conversation with the traitor.

Hiding in the Night Mother's coffin.

There, in the chill of the iron tomb, a prickling sensation picked up at the back of her neck...

Right before the Night Mother started to speak.

"_Yes, yes. We know of Astrid's insecurities_," the Night Mother went on, answering the silent question and brushed it off before saying,"_ We are the same, you and I. We are the same on different sides. I am dead yet you are living. We both do not speak to many. Only one. Not with our lips...but our minds are a different story._"

It was true. She never felt the need to use her voice. There seemed to not really be anything of great importance to talk about. No one liked what she liked. No one had done a lot of what she had done. Her mind, however, was always full of questions. She loved to learn new things.

"_No...Cicero will never hear my voice. He shall remain my faithful Keeper. You, however, Dragonborn...WILL be my Listener._"

Nothing came to her mind then. It was affectively wiped clean of any form of words and thoughts.

"_Yes, you. You who share my iron tomb, who warms my ancient bones. You who has the souls of dragons trapped in her own. You are now mine. I give you this task. Travel to Volunruud. Speak with Amaund Motierre._"

Outside, the sounds of lamenting drifted to the Bosomer's ears as Cicero started moaning about his failure to the Night Mother for not tracking the Listener.

For not being able to find...her.

"_Tell Cicero that the time has come. Speak to him the words he has been waiting for, all these years..._"

"_I am honored for the title, dark mother_," she had thought back graciously as the Matron fell silent once more and light spilled through the widely opening crack as the coffin doors were pulled open.

And the screams started up. She patiently waited him out.

**XXXXX**

Cicero stopped and cocked his head to the side. He could see the defiler's lips moving, forming words over and over again. Curiosity, for once, got the better of him. He squinted harder to watch her lips move silently.

He blanched at what he thought was...

"What is that," he asked shrilly,"What are those words you're mouthing over and over and over?!"

She didn't look up. Her eyes were still glued to the ground near his feet.

"Say it again," he said, knife still poised and eyes wild,"Say it aloud! Say it again! Say it say it SAY IT, damn you!"

She looked up at him slowly, maddeningly slow until their eyes connected over the gap of space and she went over the words again. He could tell. Her milky eyes lightened and dimmed with the words as they went over in her head.

"Aloud," he shrieked,"Say the words alooooud!"

She looked at him blankly with her maddening white eyes. With a quick jump, Cicero was on her with the knife now at her throat.

"TELL ME," he raged, pressing it down hard enough so that blood leaked from the pale flesh,"TELL ME THOSE WORDS YOU SPEEEEAK!"

When she still didn't, when she still remained as silent as the Night Mother, he screamed once more. Silence! Damnable silence! Too many times has it filled his ears with it's chaotic buzz and embraced him in it's maddening hold! He would make this silent defiler speak! As he stabbed her and kept her alive, he will make her scream!

Cicero raised the dagger high, eyes gleaming with merriness at the thought of making her scream-

And she spoke. A mere whisper, like a soft breeze. It made his skin pebble like one.

"Darkness rises," she whispered,"when silence...dies."

He stopped the plummeting of the dagger when his body went into shock.

The words! The words, the words, the words! She said the words! The blessed, beautiful words! A laugh started up in his chest and came forward.

"OOOOHHHH YOU ARE THE LISTENER," he screeched happily, jumping up from her,"It's you you you YOU YOU YOUUUUUU! AHAAAHAAHA!"

He grinned up at her so widely, she could have sworn his face would split into two pieces. He suddenly starting doing a happy dance around her figure as she stood

"THE LISTENER HAS BEEN FOUND!"

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Haha! Meet Hesara! My Bosmer from Skyrim. She belongs to me and everything else belongs to Bethsada.**

**Please enjoy and tell me what you think! Ideas for what you want next would be good, too.**


	2. Chapter 2

"She's BACK! Our lady is BACK," he continued to cackle merrily. He danced about the room screeching, but Hesara's attention was diverted to the sound of rushing feet and looked quickly to the door as Astrid bursted in,"By Sithis, this ends now!"

She was looking all over the room angrily before narrowing in on the Jester,"Back away, fool! Whatever you've been planning is over!"

She jerked her head and slowly Hesara made her way over,"Are you all right? I heard the commotion. Who was Cicero talking to? Where's the accomplice?"

She looked around the room behind the Bosmer, snarling,"Reveal yourself, traitor!"

Cicero ran up to them, still grinning widely and at every other word, glanced at Hesara,"I only spoke to the Night Mother! I spoke to the Night Mother, but she didn't speak to me! Oh no! She spoke only to her."

He turned to point at her, his eyes shining with excitement and laughed again,"She's BACK! Our lady mother is BACK! She finally chose chose chose chose! She can finally speak to us! Speak to us throooooough~"

He paused for a moment before screeching happily once more,"THE LISTENEEEEEERRRRRR!"

Both women cringed at the sound. Outside Hesara could hear Arnbjorn growl in annoyance and Veezara's hiss of pain. When he went back to giggling erratically, Astrid turned to face the still silent Bosomer,"Arnbjorn heard the commotion and I knew you'd been found out. But what is that fool blathering about?

"He's saying I'm a listener." A gasp filled the silent room.

"No no noooooo," Cicero said, jumping between her and Astrid, looking a little desperate," Not _a_ listener! **THEEEEE** LISTENER!"

Hesara blinked at him before talking over his head to Astrid,"The Mother talked. She said I was hers."

Astrid's face remained blank, but her brows furrowed as she took in the information.

"She wants a job done. A Mortierre person. He wants to talk."

Cicero let out another loud squeal and started jumping all over the place in glee,"She spoke! Spoke spoke spoke spoke! We can hear her! Her will shall be DONE!"

"No," Astrid gasped, losing her cool facade for a moment,"No no no no! Don't do ANYTHING. Not, not yet."

Both watched as she left the room, looking like her whole world had ended and Cicero grumbled darkly,"Ooooh, Defiler! Fraud! She does not believe in the Night Mother!"

He turned and grinned up at her crazily,"We'll make her see, won't we? The Night Mother has chosen a LISTENER! LISTENER!"

His crazy giggling started up again,"She's back back back baaaaaAAAAAACK! Blood will flow through Skyrim again and paint the skies red!"

Hesara stared for a while at Cicero, not really hearing what he was babbling about,"_Mortierre_. _Mortierre_," she thought but the name brought no memories or even bells maybe in another mind...one that had been around for a longer time. She found Babette hunched over the medical herbs she had gathered from outside, carefully grating them with a frown of concentration. She looked over as the scratching of a quill, along with Cicero's constant giggling becoming louder. Hesara handed over a piece of paper.

"Oh? And what is this," the little vampire asked, gently taking the paper. She studied it for just a moment before a slow smile curved her lips,"The Mortierre family," she asked, hming quietly and tapping her cheek,"That is a very old family. Breton, too, if I remember correctly."

She handed the slip of paper back,"That's all that I can really tell you."

Hesara frowned down at the paper as she tried to wonder what a member of an old Breton family would want with the Dark Brotherhood. Something was prodding the back of her mind that it was something more than a simple assassination.

"Mor-tierre,"Cicero's voice purred over her shoulder. The Fool was standing on the tips of his toes to read the name, grinning crazily,"The Mortierre family, needs MORE TEAR be-cause their blood is blue! Tear tear tear TEARY AIR, the Mortierre family fares are fair!

His laughter grated on her ear as he fell back. She turned around slowly to face him...and slapped him.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Yeah, sorry this is a boring chapter, I promise it'll pick up in the next!**

**Cicero and everyone else belongs to Bethsada**

**Hesara is mine**

**Please review! Ideas are most welcome and I'll try to put them in the story!**


End file.
